Freeway Drivers

A man in his mid-20s died Sunday morning when the truck he was driving veered at high speed off the San Diego Freeway, plunged down an embankment, and smashed into a grove of trees in Van Nuys. The impact flattened the roof of the driver's 1993 Ford Explorer and broke his neck, the California Highway Patrol said. The man's name was not released, pending notification of relatives. He was pronounced dead at the scene. A CHP spokesman said the accident occurred shortly before 7:40 a.m.

A Newbury Park man suffered a fatal heart attack while driving on the Ventura Freeway near Thousand Oaks on Saturday morning, the California Highway Patrol said. Charles W. Caudle, 72, was at the wheel of his Cadillac Seville about 7 a.m. heading north near the Wendy Drive exit when he was stricken, CHP Sgt. Steven Bourke said. There was no one else in the vehicle and no other cars were involved in the accident. Caudle's car went off the side of the freeway and stopped in a ditch.

A Los Angeles man who was deported from Mexico to face charges of masterminding the freeway off-ramp slaying of a downtown property owner has pleaded guilty and will receive a prison sentence of 20 years, authorities said. The plea bargain for Rene Cruz Reynoso was announced last week as jury selection was getting under way for his murder trial in Santa Monica Superior Court. Reynoso, 30, was charged in the 1991 killing of Ronald B.

Making highway work safer isn't easy, especially when it involves workers who are on the job at night when much of the maintenance and construction work is done. The problem is that sleepy drivers--or, worse, motorists who have had too much to drink--too often ignore warning devices, such as orange cones and flashing lights, and plow right through safety barriers.

It's a jungle out there-- there being the Antelope Valley Freeway, especially during weekday evening rush hour as the 40,000-odd Antelope Valley residents who work in Los Angeles come rushing home at 60, 65 and 70 m.p.h., bumper to bumper, low on blood sugar, following too close, late for dinner, late to pick up the kids, late for a cold drink in a soft chair in front of the big-screen TV and then-- What the hell is this!!!!

What does Eldon Dickinson, a 53-year-old dentist from Camarillo, have in common with show-biz star Bette Midler? Trash. They cringe at the sight of it along the highway. So they each have taken on the job of keeping two-mile segments of the Ventura Freeway free of litter. Midler made headlines earlier this month as the latest recruit to Caltrans' "Adopt-A-Highway" program, but Dickinson and his family have been cleaning up after motorists for a year.

A Chatsworth man crashed his sedan into a brick wall in Newbury Park after leading authorities on a harrowing chase along the Ventura Freeway that reached speeds of 115 m.p.h. Throughout the chase, the driver kept his car lights off as he sped south on the freeway toward Los Angeles, spokesmen for the Ventura Police Department and the California Highway Patrol said. Authorities said it was fortunate that the incident happened late Sunday when traffic was light.

Caltrans advises motorists that it has scheduled the following freeway work in the Southeast and Long Beach areas this week. Repair locations are listed below by the nearest city or cities. ARTESIA FREEWAY (91) 1. Long Beach: Eastbound No. 1 and 2 lanes from the Long Beach Freeway (710) to Atlantic Avenue; 6:30 a.m. to noon today; asphalt patching. LONG BEACH FREEWAY (710) 2. Bell: Southbound off-ramp from eastbound Florence Avenue; 1 to 2:30 p.m. Wednesday; electrical repair. 3.

Three more tow trucks have been assigned to assist motorists stalled on the San Diego Freeway in San Fernando Valley, county transportation officials said Monday. The trucks will join eight that already patrol the Valley under a program to get broken-down cars off congested freeways quickly. More than 1,000 drivers have been helped since the program began last month.

A car driven by a suspected drunk driver crashed on the Long Beach Freeway early Thursday, killing the driver's younger brother, who was a passenger, authorities said. Honn Ho, 25, of Long Beach, was booked on suspicion of manslaughter and felony drunk driving in the death of his brother, Sok Ho, 23, California Highway Patrol Officer Lyle Whitten said. Authorities said Ho was driving faster than 90 m.p.h. about 2:30 a.m.